Allocating addresses to mobile stations

Abstract

A method of allocating an address to a mobile station operating in a wireless communication system is described in order to facilitate a communication link to a fixed communication system. The method is characterised by the steps of receiving ( 100 ) an address mapping inquiry from the fixed communication system; locating ( 102 ) a respective terminal identifier ( 58 ) of the mobile station in response to the supplied address mapping inquiry; and determining whether an address has been allocated for the mobile station. If an address has not been allocated to the mobile station, an address allocation request ( 112 ) is activated and an address corresponding to the respective terminal identifier ( 58 ) of the mobile station is allocated.

1  A method of allocating an address to a mobile station operating in a wireless communication system in order to facilitate a communication link to a fixed communication system, the method characterised by the steps of: 
 receiving an address mapping inquiry from the fixed communication system;  
 locating a respective terminal identifier of the mobile station in response to the supplied address mapping inquiry;  
 determining whether an address has been allocated for the mobile station;  
 activating, 9  in response to a negative determination, a packet data protocol context allocation request; and  
 allocating a packet data protocol context having an address corresponding to the respective terminal identifier of the mobile station.  
 
     
     
         2  A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 1 , wherein the address is an Internet Protocol address.  
     
     
         3  A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 1 , wherein the steps of receiving and locating are performed by a domain name server.  
     
     
         4  A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 3 , wherein the received address mapping inquiry corresponds to a domain name of the mobile station.  
     
     
         5 . A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 4 , wherein the address is an Internet Protocol Address and the step of allocating an internet protocol address is performed by a gateway or dynamic host configuration protocol, the method further comprising the steps of: 
 transmitting an internet protocol address packet by said gateway to said domain name server;    extracting said internet protocol address from said internet protocol address packet by said domain name server; and    responding to said fixed communication system with the associated internet protocol address.    
     
     
         6 . A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 1 , wherein the inquiry is received from an internet host.  
     
     
         7 . A method of allocating an address to a mobile station according to  claim 1 , wherein the step of determining whether an address has been allocated for the mobile station includes a step of sending an internet protocol address query with a respective terminal identifier.  
     
     
         8 . A communications system characterised by a mapping table for allocating an address to a mobile station operating in a wireless communication system in order to facilitate a communication link to a fixed communication system, wherein the mapping table maps the mobile station domain name address to a mobile station terminal number.  
     
     
         9 . A communications system in accordance with  claim 8 , the communications system further characterised by a signalling interface carrying said domain name address information between a network operator's domain name server containing said mapping table and a gateway.  
     
     
         10 . A communications system in accordance with  claim 9 , the communications system, the domain name server having a transmitter portion for transmitting an internet protocol address query to said gateway and a receiver portion for receiving an internet protocol response from said gateway.  
     
     
         11 . A communications system in accordance with  claim 10 , the communications system wherein the transmitter transmits an internet protocol address request to said gateway on receipt of a negative response from said gateway indicating an internet protocol address had not been allocated for the mobile station.  
     
     
         12 . A communications system according to any one of the preceding claims  8 , wherein said fixed communication system is an internet host that initiates the request to communicate with the mobile station.  
     
     
         13 . A method of mapping an internet protocol address in response to a domain name inquiry of a mobile station operating in a wireless communication system in order to facilitate a communication link from a fixed communication system, the method comprising the steps of: 
 receiving at a domain name server an address mapping inquiry from the fixed communication system relating to a domain name of the mobile station;    sending an internet protocol address inquiry by the domain name server to a gateway to determine whether an address has been allocated for the mobile station;    receiving, by the domain name server, an internet protocol address from the gateway, if an internet protocol address has previously been allocated to the mobile station associated with that domain name; and    responding to the fixed communication system with the associated internet protocol address.    
     
     
         14 . A communications unit performing the steps of any one of method  claims 1  to  7  or  13 .  
     
     
         15 . A communications unit for operating in the communications system of any one of  claims 8  to  12 .